Write This Way
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Other titles from Bloomsbury Education 100 Ideas for Primary Teachers: Supporting Children with Dyslexia by Gavin Reid and Shannon Green 100 Ideas for Primary Teachers: Writing by Adam Bushnell, Rob Smith and David Waugh Dyslexia: 3rd edition by Gavin Reid Grammarsaurus Key Stage 1: The Ultimate Guide to Teaching Non-Fiction Writing, Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar by Mitch Hudson and Anna Richards Reading Recharged: Activities to put the spark into guided and whole-class reading by Alex Barton The Dyslexia Assessment by Gavin Reid and Jennie Guise The Writing Book: How to develop young writers by Zoë and Timothy Paramour Write Like a Ninja: An essential toolkit for every young writer by Andrew Jennings
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Write This Way Structured lessons and activities for reluctant young writers
Gavin Reid, Jenn Clark and Michelle McIntosh
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BLOOMSBURY EDUCATION Bloomsbury Publishing Plc 50 Bedford Square, London, WC1B 3DP, UK 29 Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin 2, Ireland BLOOMSBURY, BLOOMSBURY EDUCATION and the Diana logo are trademarks of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc First published in Great Britain, 2024 by Bloomsbury Publishing Text copyright © Gavin Reid, Jenn Clark and Michelle McIntosh, 2024 Illustrations copyright © Gavin Reid, Jenn Clark and Michelle McIntosh, 2024; Canva Gavin Reid, Jenn Clark and Michelle McIntosh have asserted their rights under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as Authors of this work Bloomsbury Publishing Plc does not have any control over, or responsibility for, any third-party websites referred to or in this book. All internet addresses given in this book were correct at the time of going to press. The author and publisher regret any inconvenience caused if addresses have changed or sites have ceased to exist, but can accept no responsibility for any such changes All rights reserved. This book may be photocopied, for use in the educational establishment for which it was purchased, but may not be reproduced in any other form or by any other means – graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or information storage or retrieval systems – without prior permission in writing of the publishers Quotations from National Curriculum documents used in this publication are approved under the Open Government Licence 3.0: www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN: PB: 978-1-8019-9333-3; ePDF: 978-1-8019-9335-7; ePub: 978-1-8019-9332-6
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Contents Acknowledgements viii Introduction ix ‘I don’t know what to write.’ ix The trouble with writing ix Features of effective writing x How to use this book xi Chapter by chapter xi Lesson by lesson xii At a glance: Handwriting xiv
Chapter 1: Grammar Introduction 2 Lesson 1: Nouns 4 Lesson 2: Proper nouns 6 Lesson 3: Verbs 9 Lesson 4: Compound words 10 Lesson 5: Adjectives 13 Lesson 6: Pronouns 14 Lesson 7: Adverbs 16 Lesson 8: Contractions 18 Lesson 9: Prepositions 19 At a glance: Spelling 21
Chapter 2: Sentence crafting Introduction 24 Lesson 1: A sentence is… 25 Lesson 2: Subjects and predicates 28
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Lesson 3: Types of sentences 32 Lesson 4: Prepositional phrases 33 Lesson 5: Main clauses 35 Lesson 6: Sentence fragments 38 Lesson 7: Compound sentences and coordinating conjunctions 42 Lesson 8: Subordinate clauses 50 Lesson 9: Run-on sentences 58 At a glance: Technology 61
Chapter 3: Punctuation Introduction 64 Lesson 1: Capitals 65 Lesson 2: End punctuation 68 Lesson 3: The possessive apostrophe 70 Lesson 4: Listing commas 74 Lesson 5: Direct speech 78 Lesson 6: Semicolons 81 At a glance: Dyspraxia 86
Chapter 4: Paragraph writing Introduction 88 Lesson 1: A paragraph is… 89 Lesson 2: Stages of writing 92 Lesson 3: Brainstorming 94
Contents
Lesson 4: Organising your ideas 96 Lesson 5: Supporting sentences 99
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Lesson 6: Topic sentence 102 Lesson 7: Concluding sentence 104 Lesson 8: Detail sentences 105 Lesson 9: Creating a hook for your paragraph 106 At a glance: Executive Functioning 108
Chapter 5: Creative writing Introduction 110 Lesson 1: Story Mountain 111 Lesson 2: Creating a storyboard 113 Lesson 3: Your Story Mountain 115 Lesson 4: Beginning, middle and end 117 Lesson 5: Setting the stage 119 Lesson 6: Character development 120 Lesson 7: Painting the scene 122 Lesson 8: Painting the scene 2 125 Lesson 9: Adding colour to your sentences 127 Lesson 10: Show! Don’t tell 129 Lesson 11: Creating dialogue 132 At a glance: Written output 133 Extension activities 135 Conclusion 137 References 139 Index 141 Author Biographies 143
Contents vii
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Acknowledgements We wish to thank our family, friends and colleagues whose support made this book possible. We would also like to express our gratitude to teachers, educators and parents who support future writers and recognise the impact of the written word. This book is for you.
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Introduction ‘I don’t know what to write.’ Callum, an 11-year-old pupil and school sports champion, sat staring at the blank piece of paper on his desk. His pencil was at his side – he had not yet put it to paper. When asked what the problem was, he answered with the all too familiar words, ‘I don’t know what to write.’ He was meant to write about football, his favourite sport and something at which he excelled. Despite having just discussed the main topics of football – the rules, fans, teams and leagues – he still did not know what to write or how to start!
This scenario is familiar to many teachers and parents. It can be exasperating for us, but even more so for the child. This book is intended to help pupils like Callum (and many others, younger and older), who see writing as a challenge and a chore. As practitioners, we know that, with support and encouragement, these children can become exciting and successful writers. With sufficient structure, pre-writing discussion and a menu of strategies, they can turn the corner and develop successful and independent writing skills. That is the aim of this book. We are experienced in working with learners of all ages – from early years to university level. The principles and practices we will be adhering to in this book are beneficial for all levels, ages and stages of writing. Some of the strategies may differ, but these will be signposted for certain age ranges.
The trouble with writing You could argue that writing has lost out on the education priority list to other areas, such as reading accuracy and reading comprehension. One of the issues with writing is that it includes a range of different skills. These skills, like pencil control, vocabulary, grammar and spelling, emerge at different developmental stages. A delay in developing any of them can impede the writing process. If children have difficulty holding a pencil or writing a sentence, for example, they will not persevere and instead turn to easier and more manageable activities. Writing is not an easy task to master, as children must eventually blend and synthesise all these skills to produce fluent and grammatically correct writing. It is important that this is prioritised in curriculum development in all schools at all levels. Practice makes perfect. When writing, some children will hold a pencil in one hand and a rubber in the other. This is due to an inbuilt fear of making mistakes and writing something ‘less than perfect’. Attitude and a positive outlook are essential – we need to eliminate the rubber habit. Using technology is a great boost for all and can spur many reluctant writers to turn a corner and start taking risks with writing. But developing keyboard skills takes time, and the negativity some pupils experience with writing starts early! And although more pupils than ever before are moving towards using technology for writing at an earlier age, we cannot ignore the need and requirements for legible handwriting. For some learners, a handwriting programme will still need to be a priority in their daily instruction. We are aware of the importance of that, particularly for children who have not yet acquired handwriting skills. A DfE (Department of Education) research evidence report on writing in the UK (2012) found that writing was the subject with the worst performance at Key Stages 1 and 2 compared to reading, maths and science. Evidence also shows that there is a gender gap in pupils’ performance in writing, with girls outperforming boys throughout the Key Stages. The report noted that, for struggling writers, explicit, interactive and scaffolded instruction in planning, composing and revising strategies was highly recommended.
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The report suggested that effective, whole-class teaching of writing can be based on a comprehensive overview of the processes involved in writing. These include teaching pupils strategies and tools for planning, drafting, sharing, evaluating, revising and editing, summarising, sentence combining and using appropriate vocabulary. There needs to be a shift to help learners move towards independence in writing. Once pupils acquire the basics, they can become more inventive, imaginative and successful in their writing process. We are also aware that writing is cross-curricular and can be utilised in different subjects and activities, such as Drama, PE, Art and outside-school activities. In a UK study looking at the most popular type of writing materials children engaged with, Clark (2012) found that text messages and emails were the most popular, and letters, diaries, blogs and essays were low on the frequency list. Clark also found that certain types of writing were associated with higher writing attainment, including poems, fiction, reviews and diaries. We appreciate the breadth of the skills involved in writing, both at the technical and the expressive levels, so we made the activities in this book varied and broad in scope.
Features of effective writing The Ofsted government review on English (2022) emphasises the need to view writing broadly and for different purposes – the key words being ‘describe, narrate, explain, instruct, give, respond to information and argue’. Writing should involve: ‘well-structured formal expository and narrative essays; stories, scripts, poetry and other imaginative writing; notes and polished scripts for talks and presentations; and a range of other narrative and non-narrative texts, including arguments, and personal and formal letters’ (Department for Education, 2014). This involves developing proficiency in transcription (spelling and handwriting) and composition (articulating ideas and structuring them in speech and writing). The review also indicated that research (Graham, Harris and Santangelo, 2015) emphasised the importance of explicit teaching of foundational skills as a prerequisite for writing, including spelling, handwriting, sentence construction, grammar and vocabulary. Furthermore, the Ofsted review understood the importance of motivation in writing and indicated that the following needed to be considered to develop motivated writers: ●
writing for real audiences and purposes
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writing collaboratively with peers
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a choice of topic
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the desire to share ideas with an audience.
Introduction
We have made it clear in this introduction that successful writing is an essential tool for academic success. We have also highlighted the range of skills involved in writing and that mastering these skills needs a carefully planned and structured teaching approach, and that we appreciate for some children writing does not come easy. We hope that the variety of activities and the fun elements in this book motivates your learners to practise and eventually develop the skills necessary for successful writing.
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How to use this book Chapter by chapter This book was designed for reluctant writers and for educators looking for a straightforward way to teach the many different aspects of writing. The book aims to support the explicit teaching of discrete writing skills through interesting and imaginative activities presented in a user-friendly manner. There are five main chapters, covering grammar, sentence crafting, punctuation, paragraph writing and creative writing. Before each chapter, a brief introduction of the content area is presented to prepare the user for the contents of each chapter. ●
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Grammar is vital to building strong foundations for writing. This chapter covers the basics, from nouns to prepositions, and features important review activities that help pupils synthesise and connect various grammar elements. Sentence crafting is a key skill, including developing different types of sentences and combining compound sentences and prepositional phrases. Punctuation is an important element that needs to be taught and mastered, from capital letters to semicolons. Paragraph writing can be a weakness of even the most skilled writers at primary school level. This chapter focuses on the basic elements and sentences found within a paragraph and reinforces key areas such as topic, supporting and concluding sentences. Creative writing can be daunting for many pupils. This chapter equips pupils with the skillset needed to write their own story, including character development, dialogue and creating a storyboard.
The Paragraph writing and Creative writing chapters are cumulative and should be followed sequentially from the first lesson to the end of the chapter. The other chapters allow for a more ‘dip in’ approach and their contents can be used as single, standalone lessons based on the needs of your pupil, group or class.
At a glance These sections are included in between the main chapters of the book and they are designed as single-page snapshots into wider issues related to writing. This includes possible underlying reasons that some children may experience writing difficulties, such as dysgraphia, and also includes some additional information on useful supports, such as assistive technology. The specific areas covered are: handwriting, spelling, technology, dyspraxia, executive functioning and written output. The main focus of the book is the ready-to-go lesson plans that help to support writing development, but if you would like to take a deeper dive into what might be causing writing difficulties, these ‘At a glance’ pages act as signposts to further information available. If you think a child’s writing difficulties may be due to a special educational need, you should discuss this with the parents/carers and follow this up with the school’s SENCO.
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Lesson by lesson Depending on your dynamic, all lessons are adaptable to a class, small group or one-to-one. Each lesson is self-contained and lists all material needed, from the discovery section to the main lesson activity to the extension activities. We believe in the importance of reviewing learned materials, so we included scope for this in every chapter, while also endeavouring to make the activities practical, interesting, eye-catching and engaging. We designed each lesson with busy parents and educators in mind, helpfully breaking down the lesson into four sections so you can quickly skim the topic before teaching it. The four sections are: ●
Before you teach
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Discovery
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Main activity
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Tips, adaptions and extensions.
Here is the layout of each lesson plan, with further information about how each section works below. Before you teach tells you what you need for the lesson
Before you teach Teacher should be familiar with: Categories of nouns Discovery materials: ● Nouns discovery Main activity materials: ● Noun Town - name the nouns Connections to: Proper nouns, subject in sentences
Discovery Sort the nouns into the correct categories: person, place or thing. Great! What is the same about the nouns in the category ‘place’? That’s right, they’re all places like rooms, buildings, cities and countries. What is the same about all the nouns in the category ‘person’? That’s right they’re all people like you and me. What is the same about all the nouns in the category ‘thing’? That’s right, they all name something that isn’t a place or a person, like a feeling or an object. You have just discovered a fancy grammar term – nouns. Nice job!
Main activity
Tips, adaptions and extensions offer ideas to take the lesson further
You just discovered that a noun is a person, place or thing. Let’s check our thinking. Are you a noun? Is this pencil a noun? Is England a noun? Yes – these are all nouns because they name a person, place or thing. Can you think of any other nouns? If it’s a person, place or thing, then you’re right – it’s a noun. in Noun Town. The person who names the most correct nouns wins the game.
Tips, adaptations or extensions Multisensory: Create a Noun Town in your own setting, using your classroom as the town. Make signs and leave paper and clipboards at each station so pupils can move around the room. Classroom: Using an interactive whiteboard, have the pupils play Noun Town as a class. Create teams and have them play as a group. Group intervention: Use the activity sheet and play as a group for overlearning. Depending on the size of the group, play individually or in teams.
Discovery uses pupils’ background knowledge to help engage them (the ‘warm up’) Main activity forms the crux of the lesson, offering clear scripted instruction
How to use this book
Before you teach provides you with the relevant background information needed to prepare for the lesson. It states what pupils need to know to successfully complete the lesson, and what you should be familiar with to teach it. There are also ‘connections’ listed to allow the user to cross-reference between lessons and topics. Materials and preparation are explicitly outlined so parents and educators can confidently teach the lesson knowing that all necessities have been prepared. Some of the materials are online-only and some are printed within the book, available to photocopy and write on or cut out, but copies of all materials are available online at this web address: bloomsbury.pub/write-this-way. hen you see this icon, there is an online resource to accompany the lesson, available at bloomsbury. W pub/write-this-way. Print out or share these resources on an interactive whiteboard. There are options for black and white or colour worksheets. hen you see this icon, it means the resource to accompany the lesson is included in the book. You W will find these on the pages immediately after the lesson. Photocopy these resources and use them with your class. Copies of these worksheets are also available online to print, so that you can find everything you need for these lessons in one convenient place.
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ou will recognise the book resources through the pen icon in the top corner of the page. This indicates Y that you and your pupils can photocopy these pages, to write on or to cut out activity materials. The Discovery and Main activity sections form the backbone of the lesson. Both parts are scripted, sequential and straightforward. You can feel confident with the script, as it is specific to each lesson and designed to be easily grasped by the learner. You don’t have to worry about leaving something out if you are attempting a topic for the first time, as the script provides all of the required terms and core language. The Discovery section works as a warm-up activity and it is designed to encourage learners to actively participate in the content of the lesson and use their background knowledge to engage with the subject matter. The Main activity section follows on seamlessly and readily allows for the core content to shine through. Tips, adaptations or extensions provide helpful, relevant and specific extras to the content of the lesson. Whenever possible, multisensory suggestions are included to complement lesson content, as well as extension ideas for classroom educators who may need extra suggestions for their ambitious pupils. Two of these extension ideas are repeated throughout – the take away menu slip and the key point card. These can be found online. The purpose of these cards is to allow pupils to briefly write one sentence about the lesson they have just completed. Pupils can choose either the key or the take away slip to consolidate their learning. Pupils are encouraged to keep a key chain of review elements so that they can review material before starting new lessons. More detail about these cards is included on p. 135. Motivation is an important ingredient for successful writing. We hope it is reassuring to know that all the ideas, materials and activities in this book have been used in our various teaching practices. They are tried and tested, and consistent with evidence-based research. Write This Way is intended to be a complete resource for educators and parents who want to teach the process of writing. We hope that you will enjoy using these and your pupils benefit from them in many ways.
How to use this book xiii
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At a glance Handwriting
This ‘At a glance’ page offers information on how handwriting difficulties can affect children’s motivation to write, and provides resources to help improve handwriting skills. These pages are designed as a snapshot into wider issues related to writing.
Handwriting difficulties can be referred to as dysgraphia, but not in all cases. Many children just need some support to develop their handwriting and adopt a different style. This is often more effective with younger children, as handwriting style can soon become ingrained and difficult to change for children further up the school. It is crucial that handwriting difficulties are identified as early as possible and that programmes are in place to support children with handwriting issues. It is important to consider the following: hand dominance, pencil grip, posture, letter formation, reversals of letters, spacing, letter size, consistency, fluency and the possibility of fatigue. There are a number of apps available that can help to improve handwriting, including: ●
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Hairy Letters hip hop hen
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SnapType Pro
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Writing Wizard
Further resources
At a glance
Doodlr.io. (n.d.). Doodlr.io - Multiplayer Drawing and Guessing Game. [online] Available at: http://doodlr. io [Accessed 15 Jun. 2023]. Dyspraxia Foundation. (n.d.). Dyspraxia Foundation Information Sheets. [online] Available at: https:// dyspraxiafoundation.org.uk/advice/info-sheets [Accessed 15 Jun. 2023]. National Handwriting Association. (n.d.). National Handwriting Association. [online] Available at: https:// nha-handwriting.org.uk [Accessed 15 Jun. 2023]. ces Nessy. (n.d.). Free Learning Resources. [online] Available at: www.nessy.com/en-gb/free-resour [Accessed 15 Jun. 2023].
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CHAPTER 1
Grammar
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Introduction
Write This Way
This chapter will focus on the key elements of grammar, including parts of speech, such as nouns and verbs, as well as more advanced structures that pupils can learn to recognise and integrate confidently in their written work. Throughout this book, we strive to help the learner, regardless of age, to gain independence and mastery over the writing process. The aim is for the learner to recognise and utilise the rules of grammar automatically. Without this ability, their writing flow may be restricted. Practice can help to develop automaticity, so this chapter includes review activities that help pupils to synthesise and connect all of the grammar elements in this chapter. Review activities are an important aspect of this book, and are also a key part of ‘best practice’ in teaching generally. The National Curriculum in England, implemented in 2014, requires primary school pupils to learn grammatical terms. The focus on grammar in the 2014 curriculum exceeds that of previous versions of the National Curriculum – it emphasises the importance of teaching grammar. It states that pupils ‘should develop the stamina and skills to write at length, with accurate spelling and punctuation. They should be taught the correct use of grammar’ (Department for Education, 2013a). Learning the technical terms of grammar is seen as a key component of writing well. Children aged six to seven are therefore expected to learn the meaning of grammatical terms. They are also expected to recognise these grammatical terms in a range of words and phrases. Throughout primary school, pupils need to be familiar with the following terminology (Department for Education, 2013b). Year 1
letter, capital letter word, singular, plural sentence punctuation, full stop, question mark, exclamation mark
Year 2
noun, noun phrase statement, question, exclamation, command compound, suffix adjective, adverb, verb tense (past, present) apostrophe, comma
Year 3
preposition, conjunction word family, prefix clause, subordinate clause direct speech consonant, consonant letter vowel, vowel letter inverted commas (or ‘speech marks’)
Year 4
determiner pronoun, possessive pronoun adverbial
Year 5
modal verb, relative pronoun relative clause parenthesis, bracket, dash cohesion, ambiguity
Year 6
subject, object active, passive synonym, antonym ellipsis, hyphen, colon, semicolon, bullet points
While the National Curriculum has increased emphasis on teaching grammar at an early age, it can still be an area of controversy. Wyse (2022) argues that teaching grammar to six and seven year olds may have shortcomings. In a study involving 70 schools, 1,700 Year 2 pupils and 70 teachers, the research team did not find an improvement in pupils’ narrative writing as a result of the grammar intervention. (Although there was a positive effect shown in sentence generation, which was seen as very encouraging.)
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In Scotland, unlike England, Wales and N. Ireland, there is no prescriptive national curriculum so the teaching of grammar is less rigid. The Scottish national curriculum, known as the Curriculum for Excellence (Education Scotland, 2019), is used from ages 3 to 18 (nursery to secondary school). It’s an approach designed to provide young people with the knowledge, skills and attributes they need for learning, life and work in the 21st century. The Curriculum for Excellence is accompanied by a range of teacher resources, including a focus on grammar, which can be obtained on the Scottish government’s National Improvement Hub. Education Scotland has also produced an extremely helpful booklet with basic guides to parts of speech, punctuation, grammar and syntax, tricky spellings and common confusions (2017). It is recognised that providing grammar materials to support pupils’ writing is important. There is not, however, as much of an emphasis on teaching grammatical structures at an early age as in the English National Curriculum (Moray Council, 2009). In Scotland, at the early level (usually children aged 3 to 6 years in Pre-School or Primary 1), they expect children to say: ‘As I play and learn, I enjoy exploring interesting materials for writing and different ways of recording my experiences and feelings, ideas and information.’ Then, at the first level (usually children aged 5 to 9 years in Primary 2, 3 and 4), they expect children to say: ‘I can write independently, use appropriate punctuation and order and link my sentences in a way that makes sense.’ Sedita (2022) argues that children benefit from explicit instruction of text structure at all levels, and asserts that efficient processing of sentence structure is necessary for reading comprehension. This includes syntax – the arrangement of words, phrases and clauses that make up a sentence. Individual parts of speech, such as those highlighted in the activities in this chapter, provide a foundation for appropriate sentence structure. It is important that learners become competent with the grammar and grammatical structures in this chapter. These will enable them to enjoy the full benefit from the subsequent chapters, culminating in the development of the skill and craft of writing effectively and for pleasure.
Chapter 1: Grammar 3
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Lesson 1 Nouns
Before you teach Teacher should be familiar with: Nouns Discovery materials: ● Nouns Cards ● Pencils or crayons Main activity materials: ● Noun Town! (other materials needed are listed on this worksheet) Connections to: Proper nouns, subject in sentences Preparation: Photocopy or print the discovery material, Noun Cards, cut out the cards and read the discovery script. Print the main activity material, Noun Town!, hand out to pupils and read the main activity script.
Discovery ‘Sort the nouns on your Nouns Cards into the correct categories: person, place or thing. Great! What is the same about the nouns in the category ‘place’? That’s right, they’re all places like rooms, buildings, cities and countries. What is the same about all the nouns in the category ‘person’? That’s right, they’re all people like you and me. What is the same about all the nouns in the category ‘thing’? That’s right, they all name something that isn’t a place or a person, like a feeling or an object. You have just discovered a grammar term – nouns. Nice job!’
Main activity ‘You just discovered that a noun is a person, place or thing using your Nouns Cards. We call these common nouns because these types of nouns are non specific. Let’s check our thinking. Are you a noun? Is this pencil a noun? Is ‘England’ a noun? Yes – these are all nouns because they name a person, place or thing. Can you think of any other nouns? If it’s a person, place or thing, then you’re right – it’s a noun. Using the activity template, travel along the roads of Noun Town, writing them on the map. Once you have named your nouns on the sorting sheet, sort them into the correct categories.’
Write This Way
Tips, adaptations or extensions Multisensory: Create a Noun Town in your own setting, using your classroom as the town. Make ‘person’, ‘place’ and ‘thing’ signs and leave paper and clipboards at each station so pupils can move around the room, naming the items they can see at each station. Classroom: Using an interactive whiteboard, have the pupils play the Noun Town! activity as a class. Create teams and have them play as groups.
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Discovery Material: Chapter 1 Lesson 1 Nouns Cards Under each noun, write whether it is a: person, place, or thing.
Jane
school
puppy
supermarket
police officer
office
blanket
hospital
athlete
Write This Way © Gavin Reid, Jenn Clark and Michelle McIntosh 2024
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